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It wasn't that Fei Qian didn't want to develop in Jingxiang; rather, doing so would inevitably require confronting one man first—Liu Biao.
Liu Biao was a member of the Han imperial clan. Unless Fei Qian had an opportunity to replace him, given Liu Biao's temperament as observed during Fei Qian's time in Jing Province…
Sooner or later, as Fei Qian's influence grew, a complete break with Liu Biao would become inevitable. After all, the pond of Jingxiang was only so big, and such fractures within Jingxiang were not without historical precedent.
When Cao Cao marched south with his army, Jingxiang, which had seemed like a solid monolith boasting a hundred thousand armored soldiers, immediately split into three factions: one surrendered to Cao Cao, another followed Liu Bei, and the rest fled south to Jiangdong.
Strictly speaking, this wasn't Liu Biao's fault, nor was it any single individual's; the responsibility lay with the entire Jingxiang gentry.
The Jingxiang gentry were numerous…
The Kuai family, the Cai family, the Pang family, the Fei family, the Ma family, the Xiang family, the Huang family, the Lai family, the Wen family, the Li family, the Xi family…
And then there were the various prominent families who fled to Jingxiang due to the turmoil of war, the most famous of which was undoubtedly the Zhuge family…
With so many gentry families gathered together, old grudges and new conflicts created an intricate and overwhelming web of complexity.
Historically, Liu Biao formed a marriage alliance with the Cai family, elevated the Kuai family, built connections with the Huang family, and thereby gained some indirect ties to the Pang family. Through these efforts, he barely managed to balance the interests of the Jingxiang gentry. Even so, many gentry families never acknowledged Liu Biao from start to finish. For example, the Ma family never served under Liu Biao; as soon as Liu Bei arrived, they began exchanging flirtatious glances with "Big-Eared Liu"…
Therefore, if Fei Qian returned to Jingxiang, the situation he would face would be no easier than what Liu Biao had encountered back in the day. Moreover, no matter what, Liu Biao had the legitimacy of being a bona fide member of the Han imperial clan—a stark contrast to someone like Liu Bei, who had to frantically scour the Liu family genealogy to find any connection.
Additionally, by that time, Liu Biao had already been rooted in Jingxiang for over a decade. It's important to remember that the hundred thousand armored soldiers under Liu Biao's command were built up gradually after he entered Jingxiang alone. His control over these troops was undoubtedly firm, so much so that both Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu attempted to win him over at different times.
Jingxiang was like a pot of stew—chaotic, and no matter how long it simmered, it never quite cooked through or softened…
There was another crucial reason for choosing Bing Province.
This reason was that, whether for Fei Qian himself or for the Fei family of Henei, voluntarily requesting assignment to Bing Province to guard the border was, emotionally and logically, a relatively acceptable resolution.
To whom did this resolution need to be acceptable?
Naturally, to the two heavyweight gentry families of the Han: the Yuan family of Runan and the Yang family of Hongnong.
After ruining their plans, could it really be like in those movies and TV shows where everyone sits down, shares a drink, calls it a misunderstanding, has a good laugh, and then it's all forgotten?
Impossible!
Noble families were vindictive by nature. They could hold grudges for years, decades, even generations…
Fei Qian had just disrupted what could be considered a joint strategy by the Yuan and Yang families to deal with Dong Zhuo. Although both families were currently silent, it didn't mean they wouldn't remember this incident. Sooner or later, when the opportunity arose…
Did Cao Cao kill Yang Xiu just because Yang Xiu said the words "chicken ribs"?
No, it was because Yang Xiu had already been noted for many previous incidents in a little black book. Killing someone only requires an excuse…
In ancient times, especially for those from gentry families serving as court officials, there was a punishment that rulers prided themselves on as an act of mercy—exile.
"Unable to bear imposing the death penalty, they are exiled to distant lands." This practice was particularly praised by Confucians as benevolent governance and cautious punishment. After Dong Zhongshu vigorously promoted Confucianism during the Han Dynasty, exile rather than execution was often recommended for these so-called offenders from gentry families.
For instance, when Crown Prince Liu Rong clashed with Emperor Jing of Han and was forced to commit suicide, those who had followed Liu Rong were basically exiled beyond the Hexi Corridor…
That is, to the regions of Jincheng, Wuwei, Zhangye, Jiuquan, and Dunhuang. These exiles, while further accelerating the assimilation process of the Qiang and Hu tribes in Liang Province, often assisted these tribes in raiding the border regions, driven by their own pent-up resentment.
During the Han Dynasty, there were only three directions for exile: the northwest, beyond the famous Hexi Corridor; the northeast, to Liaodong; and the south, to Lingnan…
These three areas were either undeveloped, miasma-ridden lands or bitterly cold wastelands, making them ideal exile destinations in the eyes of rulers.
Therefore, while Bing Province wasn't as fully emblematic of "cold" as Liang Province, it was by no means a hospitable place—similarly bitter and cold, though perhaps slightly better than Liang Province.
Fei Qian's current voluntary request for assignment to Bing Province carried this connotation of self-imposed exile.
Before the hatred towards him intensified, he would first step back to reduce it somewhat. Otherwise, when the real reckoning came, there would be no room left to retreat!
According to the unwritten rules of the gentry, as a key figure in the Hangu Pass incident, even though Fei Qian had joined forces with Zhang Liao in self-defense, he was still, albeit unintentionally, responsible to some extent.
Therefore, after openly receiving the court's rewards, Fei Qian's declaration of his voluntary request to guard the border in Bing Province was a signal to the Yuan and Yang families: "I, Fei Qian, and the Henei Fei family, did not intentionally oppose the Yuan and Yang families. Regarding the Hangu Pass incident, although I cannot refuse the rewards from the Dong Zhuo-controlled court, I now voluntarily request exile to express my apology to the Yuan and Yang families…"
From then on, the Yuan and Yang families would lose any justification for causing trouble for Fei Qian or the Henei Fei family in the future.
Back when Fei Qian was in Jingxiang, the Kuai family had done something similar. After stabbing Fei Qian in the back and realizing they had struck iron, they immediately changed their tune, humbly apologizing to Fei Qian in person and making sure everyone in Xiangyang City knew that the Kuai family had apologized to Fei Qian…
This was the unwritten rule of the gentry.
The Yuan family of Runan and the Yang family of Hongnong, being top-tier among the empire's gentry families, were naturally upholders of these unwritten rules. Once Fei Qian made such a move, they had to respond accordingly.
Otherwise, if even the leading gentry families didn't abide by the rules, how could they expect the smaller families below them to do so?
This response came quickly.
Fei Qian hadn't been sitting in Fei Min's residence for long, and the sky hadn't even darkened, when a representative from the Yuan family arrived.
The steward from the Yuan residence brought a horse, fully equipped with saddle and bridle, and said in Fei Min's presence: "Grand Tutor Yuan, moved by Fei Qian Fei Ziyuan's fervor to guard the border, specially gifts this horse to strengthen his journey…"
The Yang family also sent someone with a set of armor. Although the wording differed slightly from the Yuan family's, the central message was the same…
A horse and a set of armor—while the items differed and their value wasn't enormous, the meaning behind them was the same:
Regarding the Hangu Pass incident, although Fei Qian was at fault for coincidentally ruining the plan, the Fei family had not been aware beforehand. Now that Fei Qian had proactively apologized through self-imposed exile, we, the Yuan (Yang) family, are not petty people. This matter is now considered settled…
Besides, the Yuan and Yang families didn't have the time to keep fixating on the insignificant Fei Qian, or even the Henei Fei family. They had bigger and more pressing matters before them.
Following the horse and armor, astonishing news swept through Luoyang like a hurricane, staggering everyone in the city.
The date for moving the capital had been set…
On the Dinghai day, it would officially begin!